Bass-baritone
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| Vocal Types |
| Female ranges
Male ranges |
A bass-baritone is a singing voice that shares certain qualities of both the baritone and the bass. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing Wagnerian bass roles like Wotan (in the Ring Cycle) and Hans Sachs (in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg). Wagner wrote those roles for what he called Hoher Bass ("high bass," this is explained in more detail at fach).
The bass-baritone voice is distinguished by two attributes. First, it must be capable of singing comfortably in a baritonal tessitura. It must also, however, have the resonant lower range typically associated with the bass. For example, the role of Wotan in Die Walküre covers the range from the F# above middle C to the F below the bass clef but only infrequently descends beyond the C below middle C.
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[edit] Bass-baritone roles in operas
- Arlington (Wakonda's Dream)
- Bijou (Le Postillon de Lonjumeau)
- Bottom (A Midsummer's Nights Dream)
- Doctor Bartolo (Il barbiere di Siviglia)
- Don Basilio (Il barbiere di Siviglia) (usually cast as a bass, however, with La calunnia transposed to C)
- Don Giovanni (Don Giovanni)
- Don Magnifico (La Cenerentola)
- Escamillo (Carmen)
- Figaro (Le nozze di Figaro)
- Méphistophélès (La Damnation de Faust)
- Nick Shadow (The Rake's Progress)
- Porgy (Porgy and Bess)
- The Dutchman (Der fliegende Holländer)
- Wolfram von Eschenbach (Tannhäuser)
- Wotan (Der Ring des Nibelungen)
[edit] Bass-baritone roles in operettas and musicals
| Common vocal ranges represented on a musical keyboard |
- Allan Swan (My Favorite Year) (Range goes from low G to Eb above middle C.)
- Dick Deadeye (HMS Pinafore)
- Pooh-Bah (The Mikado)
- The Pirate King (The Pirates of Penzance)
- Scar (The Lion King)
- Sir Despard Murgatroyd (Ruddigore)
- Sergeant Meryll (The Yeomen of the Guard)
- The Bishop of Digne (Les Miserables)
- Bill Sykes (Oliver!)
- Benjamin Franklin (1776)
- Porgy (Porgy and Bess)
- Shannon Wilson Bell (Cannibal! The Musical)
- Sweeney Todd (Sweeney Todd)Sweeny Todd is considered by many one of the hardest roles to sing as it covers a very large range. Therefore it is difficult to classify what vocal to call it. The actor portaying him must have a low bass sound and be able to go down to the Eb2, but must also be able to have a dramatic baritone sound on higher notes. During epiphany Sweeny must be able to sing up to the F sharp above middle C for extended periods.
- Jud Fry (Oklahoma!)
- Lt. Wright(The Secret Garden)
[edit] Famous bass-baritones
[edit] Classical music
- Theo Adam
- Walter Berry
- Justino Diaz
- Johannes von Duisburg
- Simon Estes
- Andrew Foster-Williams
- Hans Hotter
- George London
- James Morris
- Maggie Nice (actually a man)
- Laurentiu Rotaru
- Thomas Quasthoff
- Samuel Ramey
- Friedrich Schorr
- Bryn Terfel
- Norman Treigle
- José Van Dam
- Italo Tajo
- Sir Geraint Evans
